About

Watarase is an important piece of music that sparked the current global Japanese jazz boom, and is one of jazz pianist Fumio Itabashi's most famous compositions. This compilation is a collection of previously unreleased versions of the song and takes that were released only as independent recordings and were not widely known.

An unknown take on Watarase, now in the limelight of jazz fans around the world, has been compiled by Minoru Wakasugi, a pioneer of the Japanese jazz scene, from a 2023 perspective. Composed by Fumio Itabashi in the early 80s, the beautiful melody of this song is reminiscent of the music of Pharaoh Sanders, Ahmad Jamal and Dollar Brand, or even surpassing them, as a superb and ultra-spiritual jazz anthem that is the pride of Japan. When this song was first released, it gradually gained a reputation in the jazz scene and was a popular song that no one in that area knew, but since 2000, thanks to Mr Wakasugi's efforts, it has also spread to the club jazz scene and become known worldwide. This album looks back over 40 years of history and carefully selects 'Watarase' to be listened to now. — (via P-VIne)

Listen to sample track + sample track

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Label: P-Vine Records
Format: Vinyl, LP, Album, Limited Edition, Reissue
Country: Japan
Released: Mar 27, 2024
Genre: Jazz
Style: Post Bop, Modal
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File under: Japanese Jazz